a bleeding purple utah jazz blog

Game 59 at HOU: Our white guy > all of their white guys

What we learned tonight:
1) Once Gordon Hayward moves up in the Jazz’s pecking order (i.e. when he’s no longer the fifth option in the Jazz’s usual starting lineup) and becomes consistent (which should come with age and experience), he’s going to be damn near unstoppable. The best part is, he’s going to continue being our little secret because everyone thinks every display of athleticism by Gordo is a fluke.

2) DeMarre Carroll: solid on defense. Nice.

3) Sharing the ball and moving around like living beings achieves better results than iso’s down low and standing around like statues. Imagine that! Jamaal Tinsley, incidentally, deserves so much credit for the former, rather than the latter, happening tonight.

Quotage** Poor Jeremy Evans:

** Blake Ahearn: People look at you and I’ve heard before [that] I don’t pass the “eye test.”…I was in San Antonio and the stewardess asked if I was Matt Bonner’s friend just along for the ride. So that’s the thing I deal with, but when I step on the floor, usually when the buzzer sounds I’ve earned people’s respect. That’s just due to my hard work. (KFAN)** Big Al, post-game: Every time Gordon play the way he played tonight, every time he the leading scorer, we win. I don’t remember one time he been the leading scorer and we lost.** DeMarre Carroll, post-game: This team, we like brothers…everybody hang out with everybody. We just bond together. Everybody got each other back and everybody cheering for you. You see the three veterans, Raja, Josh, holding down the bench screaming louder than coach. It’s just a fun atmosphere to be in.

Unintentional Dirty Quote Machines of the Night (UDQM)** Harpring: Al leaking out.** ‏Boler: Scola got that tip by an inch. (H/T @bjcseven)** Boler: Big Al puts it up, and it’s a little to the left. (H/T Mr. and Mrs. @bjcseven)** Harpring: Favors seems much more comfortable going to his left hand.** Harpring on Millsap and Hayward: Coach Corbin’s gonna play them til their tongues fall out.** Boler on Hayward: He’s doing it all, on both ends.** Boler: Tinsley fires up a shot. Big. I mean, BIG. Just a little pregnant pause there, Matty, and just pops that shot.** Boler: Kanter got a piece. (H/T @SurlyMae)** Boler: Penetration. That’s what it’s all about in the 4th. (H/T @da_breezman and @allthatamar)

** Boler to Carroll on Hayward: Gordon Hayward grows and you’ve watched him grow… (H/T @SurlyMae)** Boler to Al on Hayward: What’s it like to watch him grow? (H/T @SurlyMae)** Boler to Harris on Hayward: Is it fun to watch a guy grow? (H/T @Mac_Jazz and @80walker)** Harris on Hayward: He’s continuing to grow, and he’ll continue to get better the older he gets.

Totally random and unrelated, but… I was just listening to Locke’s podcast with Phil Johnson and Phil made the following comment regarding Gordon Hayward: “We had some guys, actually some players that were here and are now gone, that didn’t think he was going to be a really good player.”

The quote is not totally precise because the podcast is so long it makes it tough to rewind and pause exactly where I want to catch word by word. But it seems pretty clear that whoever the player now gone was, he must have made a big deal out of his thoughts on Gordon to coaches and FO at the time, or else that wouldn’t have stuck with Phil for so long he’d mention it now. Kind of makes you wonder, doesn’t it?

Some stuff Phil said in this podcast really sound like we don’t know the half of the hell the organization went through last season.

If an all-star-face-of-the-franchise guy questions your potential and the GM’s sanity for drafting you and the coaches know about it, still having the confidence to develop and be the player Gordon has been really shows a lot about his character. I’m so glad he’s a Jazzman!